Good morning, Whitewater
No municipal public meetings today, but the book fair at Washington School continues. The best, probably, one could hope in these troubled times.
On this date in 1904, according to the Wisconsin Historical Society, Wisconsin’s second state capitol burned down (we’re now on our fourth, and one hopes we’ll never need a fifth):
On this date fire destroyed the second State Capitol building in Madison. On the evening of the 26th, the generator was turned off for the night. The only lights visible were two gas jets serving the night watchman. At approximately 2 a.m., night watchman Nat Crampton smelled smoke and followed the odor to a recently varnished ceiling, already in flames. A second watchman arrived to assist, but there was no water pressure with which to operate a hose. The fire department encountered a similar situation upon arrival. Governor Robert M. La Follette telegraphed fire departments in Janesville and Milwaukee for assistance. La Follette was at the capitol, directing efforts to douse the fire and entering the burning building to retrieve valuable papers. The fire was completely extinguished by 10 p.m. the next day. Losses were estimated to be close to $1 million.
The Society has a page dedicated to the fire, entitled, “Up in Smoke: The Story of the Capitol Fire of 1904,” to commemorate the event.